Dutch Village celebrates 50 years

On 10 acres in Holland Township, the focus remains on history, fun and learning. And for the Nelis family, Dutch Village continues to encompass the spirit of modern American entrepreneurialism.

Patrick Revere

On 10 acres in Holland Township, the focus remains on history, fun and learning. And for the Nelis family, Dutch Village continues to encompass the spirit of modern American entrepreneurialism.

“I think the world of my dad,” said Joe Nelis, whose father founded the business, then known as Dutch Market, on July 3, 1958. “He’s made this a successful business. We have no long-term debt. We have to borrow sometimes to cover seasonality, but we always pay it off by the end of each year.”

That first day of business closed with two customers and $12.73 in sales.

“My dad tells a story,” said Nelis, who has managed the business at 12350 James St. since 2005. “He locked up one night and was leaving the parking lot when another car came in. He turned around and opened the shop back up.”

Each winter during the early years, Harry Nelis and his brother Fred would add on a building or an attraction. As its physical presence increased, it became known as Dutch Village, and the name changed.

Sue Bladek runs a charter leisure boat service today, but began working in the family business at an early age.

“My mom would put us in Dutch costumes and we would go out to the farm and sit in the tulip beds so people could take photos of us,” Bladek recalls. “They would give us a dime. That was split between the five of us.”

Bladek also waited tables, was a Dutch dance performer and managed the Queen’s Inn Restaurant from 1983 to 1999.

Immense interest from tourists spurred rapid growth through the 1970s. In 1988, Dutch Village had its best year. It accommodated more than 550 tour buses that summer, and made 30 percent of its income in the 10 days during Tulip Time.

Dutch Village remains profitable, with an estimated 55,000 visitors each year, but business conditions have changed and sales have declined by more than 35 percent since that peak 20 years ago.

Many business people use the phrase “perfect storm” when detailing today’s negative economic conditions. The Nelis family’s challenges may be more complex than most. Fuel prices keep people away, minimum wage increases for its 35 employees erode profits and many of the products sold are bought in Europe in the face of an increasingly negative exchange rate between the dollar and Euro.

“We’re passing on additional costs at exactly the time people are trying to spend less,” Nelis said.

But the family continues to trim the business around its core objectives and make the village more interactive, more relevant to today’s consumers.

“People don’t want to just stand the entire time, watching a Dutch dance or other presentations,” Nelis said. “So we have people come out of the audience to receive lessons. We have every size wooden shoe on the floor so people can clomp around and be able to say, ‘I wore a wood block on my foot.’

“We’re also going to start a traditional cheese-making presentation,” he said. “Visitors will be able to help scoop out the curd and put it in the press.”

Each year Harry Nelis and his wife, Sandy, return from Florida in time for Tulip Time celebrations at the family business. Their son Harry is the operations manager at the village. The other siblings, Steve Nelis and Julie Steggerda, maintain interest in Dutch Village but do not participate in its daily operations.

Long-running attractions include a restored carousel, a classic chair swing, the canals and tulip beds, outdoor concrete sculptures, a Dutch and family history museum, a small eatery with authentic Dutch foods, a 100-plus-year-old street organ called “Golden Angel” and the myriad gift shops that have traditional Dutch clothing, crafts and art.

Kathy Jacoby has worked at Dutch Village for 20 years, many of which spent selling hand-painted Delftware.

“I think this is the best-kept secret in West Michigan,” Jacoby said. “I have people all the time say they regret having not come here sooner. We have beautiful products here from all over the world. It’s a real international gift shop.”

Additional celebrations at the village will include a Kids Day June 21 and a band organ rally Aug. 23 and 24.

The Holland Sentinel

DUTCH VILLAGE FACTS

- Grandfather Harry Nelis came from Beverwijk, Netherlands, in 1910

- Nelis Nurseries opened in 1917

- Dutch Market opened in 1958

- The “Golden Angel” street organ was purchased in 1967

- Nelis Tulip Farm closed in 1978

- Nelis Imports started in 1985

- Queen’s Inn Restaurant and wooden shoe factory closed in 1999

- Dutch Village Web store started in 2000

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